Articles of Confederation
The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was the first frame of government for the United States of America, establishing a weak federal government to protect the sovereignty of the states. Adopted by Congress in 1777, the Articles were effective from 1 March 1781 until 4 March 1789, when they were replaced by the current United States Constitution.
Under the Articles of Confederation, the central government (i.e. Congress) was a unicameral legislative assembly, comprised of delegates from the thirteen states. It was chaired by a President of Congress who, unlike the later office of the President of the United States lacked any executive power. Although Congress had the authority to declare war, make treaties with foreign powers, and resolve disputes between states, in most matters the central government was deliberately kept weak to protect the sovereignty of the states and could make no important decisions without the consent of at least nine states. This led to several problems, stemming from Congress' inability to levy its own taxes as well as its lack of a strong, standing army to provide for the nation's defense. Proponents of a stronger central government, known as Federalists, soon began to call for a revision to the Articles of Confederation. This ultimately led to the Constitutional Convention of 1787, in which the Articles were thrown out and replaced with the United States Constitution, which persists as the frame of the U.S. government to this day.
Drafting & Ratification
By June 1776, the American Revolutionary War had been ongoing for a little over a year. King George III of Great Britain (r. 1760-1820) had recently rejected the Olive Branch Petition, a last-ditch offer of peace sent by the Second Continental Congress, and had declared the Thirteen Colonies to be in a state of open rebellion. To use the words of Thomas Jefferson, the king's response left many Americans feeling as though the "last hope of reconciliation" between crown and colony had been severed, leaving the colonies with no recourse but independence; indeed, Thomas Paine's seminal pamphlet Common Sense warmed many colonists to the idea of independence, something that would have seemed unthinkable even a year before. Radical members of Congress had spent months garnering support for their cause and urging colonial legislatures to prepare for independence. Finally, on 7 June 1776, Richard Henry Lee of Virginia put a motion before Congress that "these United Colonies are, and of right to be, free and independent Statesβ¦and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved" (Middlekauff, 331).
As the congressmen prepared to vote on Lee's motion, three committees were set up to begin laying the groundwork for a new nation. The first of these committees, the famous Committee of Five, was charged with the drafting of a Declaration of Independence, while the second committee was tasked with the creation of a 'model treaty' for establishing commercial relations with foreign powers. But it was the third committee that was given arguably the most important job of all: producing a frame of government for the 'perpetual union' that would bind the thirteen colonies together; in other words, they were drafting a constitution. This committee consisted of thirteen delegates, one selected from each colony, and was chaired by John Dickinson of Pennsylvania. It presented its initial draft of the Articles of Confederation to Congress on 12 July 1776, ten days after the vote for independence had passed.
The thirteen framers of the Articles had carefully considered the role that Congress would play in the new confederation. At a time when many Americans despised the British Parliament for its perceived corruption and tyranny, the framers wanted to avoid giving too much power to a central government that might one day become equally oppressive. Instead, they proposed a central government subservient to the individual states, arguing that this system was the best way to protect the liberties of American citizens. After much debate, Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation on 15 November 1777 before sending them off to the states for ratification. Virginia became the first state to ratify the Articles on 16 December 1777. 14 months later, the Articles had been ratified by every state except for Maryland, which was stubbornly holding out. Since the Articles needed the consent of all thirteen states before it could go into effect, the process of creating the confederation ground to a standstill.
Declaration of Independence by Trumbull
John Trumbull (Public Domain)
Maryland, a small state, was wary of the designs of its large and ambitious neighbor, Virginia. Maryland announced that it would not ratify the Articles unless Virginia gave up its claims on western territories, specifically the lands along the Ohio River. Many Virginians were initially indignant, and the stalemate continued for some time; all the while, Congress continued to operate as if the Articles were already in effect, adding to the legitimacy of the document. Finally, Virginia promised to renounce its claims to the Ohio territories. Satisfied with this outcome, Maryland ratified the Articles on 2 February 1781. On 1 March, the Articles formally went into effect, and the Second Continental Congress was rebranded as the Congress of the Confederation.
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